Students fearful Monday after shooting threat; family releases statement

Chelsea Deffenbacher @ChelseaDeffenB

Monday

May 13, 2019 at 12:50 PMMay 13, 2019 at 6:37 PM

After a social media post perceived as a threat led to a canceled University of Oregon event over the weekend, students are returned to class Monday after police said the threat was not deemed to be credible.

The family of the student behind the social media post released a statement Monday through the UO , explaining the student was in a mental health crisis when the Facebook post was made and apologizing for any concern that it may have caused.

"These posts never threatened violence to the UO or any person, but showed the strained state our family member was in," the statement read. "Other people somehow pulled from this that our family member was threatening violence to the campus and then shared that with each other on social media, and that went viral. We want the community to know that our family member is not a threat, and is in the hospital under secure care this week and our family member will leave the state and come home with us after leaving the hospital. Our family member has no guns, no history of violence. Our family member is a person having a mental health crisis and receiving needed care. Our family member only has wanted to do good in the world, but in this state, the words used on Facebook to express fragmented thoughts were unusual.

"We are sorry that this has resulted in worry or fear for people at the school our family member loves. We hope that you will understand that our family member is not a threat and to please respect our family’s need to take care of one another at this time."

Before the family's statement was released, William Schoeffler, a UO junior, said he will be staying away from campus and is concerned the threat was not taken seriously.

"This is clearly an unstable student who has made a threat about shooting people," Schoeffler said. "It might not meet the legal definition of a direct threat, but I am not going to risk my life because of that."

On Sunday, University of Oregon police spokesman Kelly McIver said the original posts of concern did not threaten the campus or threaten shooting.

The lengthy Facebook post appeared over the weekend and included a variety of topics, including a movie trailer and the poster's bank account information. “This is how I do business, the heads will roll. I have been stepping on a lot of toes recently, I will make all that right, but now that I have every single weapon I need," the post read. "I am ready to spend my life murdering immortal things.”

Carnival For a Cause, held by UO sorority Delta Zeta, was scheduled to begin at noon on the Erb Memorial Union green Sunday but was canceled because of the posting.

Later Sunday, McIver released additional information, discounting the rumors that had spread through social media.

"Social media posts warning about a threat of violence at the University of Oregon are not accurate," McIver's statement read. "Police have been investigating, and there are no current credible threats to the UO. Campus will be operating normally. UO Police are aware of recent social media posts by a member of the UO community that caused some concern. Police contacted the individual and the person is voluntarily cooperating with police and local partners. Police do not consider the person a threat currently and are doing everything legally possible to address the situation. Privacy laws prevent police from sharing more information."

But Schoeffler and others are not convinced.

"It is clear that the student who made the threat is unstable and his comments fit every textbook example of what shooters say on social media before a shooting," Schoeffler said Monday. "On social media he wrote that he 'used UOPD,' who said in an announcement that he is not a threat and is cooperating."

"Mental health laws might not let the university do anything, but I am not going to endanger myself when he clearly has made threats online," Schoeffler later added.

And while University of Oregon junior Ian Seitzinger said he could not afford to miss his classes Monday, he also felt the situation wasn't being taking seriously.

"Luckily I am pretty far from most big lecture halls and the EMU," Seitzinger said. "So I am going to attend but it’s a shame that even my professors don’t take this seriously enough to cancel classes."

He added, "I do not think today is a joke. Law enforcement was wrong to not keep him detained. This is what happens before every shooting. I hope there's more security at least."

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